Thunder in the Mountains: Chief Joseph, Oliver Otis Howard, and the Nez Perce War by Daniel J. Sharfstein

Author:Daniel J. Sharfstein [Sharfstein, Daniel J.]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Published: 2017-04-04T04:00:00+00:00

AFTER A WEEK IN THE MOUNTAINS, Howard’s column emerged from the Lolo Trail on August 6 to good roads, grassy meadows, and a pleasantly sulfurous soak in the local hot springs. But after a messenger brought word that Gibbon was nearing the Indians on the other end of the Bitterroot Valley, Howard left his infantry behind and rode ahead with only his staff officers, surgeons, and two hundred cavalry. Covering seventy-five miles in three days, the general was “feeling very anxious to form junction with Gibbon or communicate with him,” he wrote. With his Bannock scouts and twenty cavalry on the healthiest horses, Howard raced ahead before dawn on August 10. They made fifty-three miles at a trot and reached the Continental Divide by sunset. Along the way, they met seven civilian volunteers who had deserted from Gibbon’s fight. Howard thought their stories were too grim to be believed—“men escaping from the field invariably exaggerate the horrors of a battle,” he wrote—but he dreaded what he would find. Sending his Bannock scouts ahead in the night, Howard climbed over the pass and reached the Big Hole the next morning.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.